Occasionally I like to make a post which challenges regressive leftist / elitist group think.

I did not vote brexit and can not really comment on the US , but I do think that the labeling of those who did, with the rude names such as xenophobic and racist, has been a deplorable show of prejudice and name calling, which does reflect very badly on the remain side. I am sure that some of the brexit voters were both, but the reaction certainly exposes the fact that real unthinking contemp for the majority does exist in the political establishment, and to a degree justifies the wish of many voters for a more civil world and an end to class prejudice, which was no doubt expressed in the vote.

@OwlInASack Yes I do agree that most of them are. But throwing insults only shows the contempt and moral failing of an equally if not more spoiled and privileged political establishment.

Do not forget that they may be, "ignorant, less educated and anti-intellectual", "racist" and sometimes "massively privileged and unaware of it," and who was it who failed to raise them above that state ? Let me see, I think that would be a resposibility of the political establishment. The education of the majority is a responsibility of the political establishment alone. There is no one else.

Yes it maybe that such a task is impossible, but that is only an excuse when every effort has been made, and you can not say that the political establishment ever used it position to, promote its own wealth and priviledge first, was never corrupt and never wasted resouces on fractional disputes between its left and right.

Yes the majority of people may have many failings but make no mistake they are what the political establishment made them, and the buck does stop there.

@OwlInASack I do not point the finger at the liberal left political establishment at all, and yes it is almost certain that the right may have to take most of the blame. But however you can not exonerate the left completely, nor can you neatly split the political establishment into two groups, that simplistic political spectrum view is the heart of the problem, much of the political establishment is in that sense apolitical anyway. And even to the degree to which it may be a purely right wing problem. which I doubt, it is still a failing of the left that it did not prevent the right from its wrongdoing.

@Fernapple @OwlInASack. There is a complete schism running through the country...what has happened since the disastrous decision by Cameron to run the referendum has widened that to a chasm. What Mrs May should have done was firstly not lay down red lines about us leaving the Customs Union and Single Market nor should she have triggered Article 50 immediately. Then she should have brought all parties together in a coalition government to decide on strategy for leaving. Whether we would then have got a deal acceptable to Parliament, we will never know, but in any case any deal needs to have their approval because we elect them on our behalf to represent our best interests. Because we have not started the healing process of bringing the country together by pulling together in the best interests of everyone, but instead have widened the gap between leavers and remainers by slinging abuse at each other....right from the first day after the referendum brexiters were calling remain voters “remoaners”, and remain voters were calling leavers “stupid and ignorant”. This was exacerbated by the politicians on both sides. There has been rampant jingoism and blatant racism let loose by the Brexit side and I entirely blame the politicians for that. I am not exonerating the remain side, but if the worst thing they can be blamed for is calling the leavers ignorant and uninformed, then that bears no comparison to the hatred that the other side has spewed, as it’s seems to be open season for every closet racist and anti-Semite to come out into the open. We need a grown up Government who will bring this country together again...a monumental task now, whatever happens around Brexit. I’m afraid I am not optimistic when I see the state of both of our main political parties at present, both parties are at war with themselves, as divided as the country. I think if we had a general election tomorrow we’d get a hung parliament, with no clear winner, because the whole political system is broken and we need to change first past the post to proportional representation. However that is not going to happen in time to save us from the current mess.

@OwlInASack I am in the same state of mind,

@OwlInASack
Yes it is sad to hear anyone defend stupidity and ignorance on principle. Which is why I do not think that the Brexit issue is the main point here anyway. People are driven to defend outrageous ideas, such as anti-intellectualism, which they know in their hearts make will only make them look foolish, only because of the deepest desperation. It is only a trivial symptom of the deepening divide between the now hereditary patrician class and greater majority. And I am sorry to say that it is going to get deeper and I see no power on earth that will stop it.

Racism is growing only because minority races like all minorities are seen as favourites of the political establishment, which of course they are not. Except in so far as the political establishment uses political correctness as a propaganda tool to appear to have the moral high ground, and thereby cover its deeper failings. That the political establishments adoption of a morality which it is plainly only faking, since its greed, moral decadence and complete callus indifference to real suffering, are obvious and transparent, of course only discredits all morality, and makes the minorities into a human shield. Since because hate is rarely well directed, the blows increasingly rain down on the minorities and other false targets such as intellectualism, only because they are seen as the outward face of the political establishment, while hatred spreads. Such things are only serving to take the blame which belongs with those who failed to teach moral values, and set an example of poor moral values themselves. Or show any remorse for abandoning their responsibility to educate the majority and stand for the high moral standards, which those trusted with leadership should.

@OwlInASack The thing with evil regimes, is that they always appear strongest just before the times turn against them. Maybe I am wrong to assume that things are going to get worse, perhaps those little people beavering away below the radar will make a difference one day. I found the rise of J. Corbin a great hope, not because he was on the hard left, but because he was the first major politician for a long while who did not come from a patrician background, so it can happen.

While in the education system the idea that education should be about raising expectations seems to be taking hold again, as we see with so many children taking an interest in things such as the environment. The old unholy alliance which used to exist in education, where the right saw the teaching of morality and raised expectations as only suited to a minority of the well educated upper classes, destined to serve the establishment, and the left saw it as a middle class betrayal of lower class values, may be fading. It would be hard not to see now what the long term consequences of that alliance are. I have to go now, have a good week.

@OwlInASack Sometimes it takes only one small act of kindness or good news story to restore our faith in our fellow countrymen and women...I’m an eternal optimist and believe that basically most people believe in a fair and equable society in Britain...it’s just takes the right people to be elected into power. Let us hope that the fair minded majority succeed in bringing all classes and ethnicities together for the common good.

You would like a stronger word used ?

@Fernapple not at all. Sure, my hometown had 58% support for leave rather than the national 52% but that's not what I see of the town. It's uncomfortable to be seen through that lens on what appears to the a rather one sided video.